Miscarriage and Birth Defects

Living near a factory farm can be catastrophic for pregnant women because toxins from animal waste can cause miscarriages and birth defects. For example, the CDC believes that manure from a factory farm seeped into the groundwater of a small Indiana town and caused at least seven miscarriages. “I thought the water I was drinking was good water,” said Melissa Dickerson, a resident who suffered the miscarriage of her first child after consuming the contaminated water. “I had no idea what was going on.”²⁴

A joint report by the U.S. Geological Survey and the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture reveals some frightening facts about the level of nitrates, which are toxic byproducts of animal waste, in wells near factory farms. The report states that ingesting water with nitrate levels above 10 milligrams per liter can cause “blue baby” syndrome (methemoglobinemia), which is a condition that prevents blood from carrying oxygen and which can lead to “increased rates of stomach cancer, birth defects, miscarriage, leukemia, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, reduced body growth and slower reflexes, and increased thyroid size.” According to the report, nitrate levels in a “manure lagoon” on a typical pig factory farm measure an incredible 300 milligrams per liter, which is a level that creates a substantial threat to families who drink from nearby water sources.²⁵

Read more about respiratory problems.